


Make Lemonade when life throws you lemons

by Sweetanco



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Characters Death, Established Matt/OC, Established Ryou/Allura, Eventual Smut, F/M, Family Loss, Fluff, Friends and family shenanigans abound, Keith might swear a whole lot, M/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Shiro is a kid at heart, established Hunk/Shay, slight angst, texan keith
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-04-06
Updated: 2017-09-05
Packaged: 2018-10-15 20:03:00
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 9,308
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10556900
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sweetanco/pseuds/Sweetanco
Summary: Shiro never gave much thought to having a family or even kids of his own. It was never part of his plan. Yet when tragedy strikes, he's left with two young kids to look after in their parents’ stead. Raising kids is no easy task, this Shiro already knows. But it gets even more complicated when more people get involved and your kids grow attached to the new neighbor and his dog.All Keith wanted was to be able to finish his last science fiction novel in peace. Having a real life job demanding that you travel a little over the place once per month is already hard enough. Add in an infuriating neighbor, your stupid dog taking a liking to the neighbor’s cute kids and bringing them back,  your meddling family and their shenanigans, and there's no way you're finishing the damn story ever.Let's not mention that said neighbor is another kind of distraction altogether. It’s just life throwing lemons your way.





	1. A new beginning

**Author's Note:**

> Here comes my very first Sheith fic! I've been meaning to write something for the ship for a while now and this AU wouldn't leave me for months. I'm having fun writing it and I hope you guys can enjoy. Thanks for reading.

This couldn’t be happening. No.

Takashi Shirogane kept driving recklessly under the light rain, his body on autopilot as it maneuvered the car, streets after streets.

_Mr. Shirogane…an accident…_

Why wasn’t he there yet?  The hospital wasn’t supposed to be this far away, was it? He had been back there only once, to see Allura after she had given birth to Vittorio. Even when he had felt anxious when getting there, it hadn’t felt as far away as it did now.  

Or maybe he wasn’t getting there because his mind kept replaying that awful message over and over in his head, in slow motion.

_Your brother… His wife and children… an eighteen wheeler… the entire family was injured in the car collision…_

No. Shiro grounded his teeth together hard as his hands gripped the wheel tighter. This wasn’t happening. He had heard wrong, must have. Ryou was on a flight heading for Italy with Allura and the kids. Earlier that afternoon, Shiro had been on the phone with his niece, listening to her babbling over their incoming trip. Her attempt at teaching him how to say ‘Good morning’ and ‘Thank you’ in Italian had her parents laughing in the background.

_Are you Mr. Ryou Shirogane next of kin?...  Sir, we regret to inform you that there’s been an accident._

No. They must have had the wrong person. It was the only reasonable explanation. Shiro kept telling himself that even as he parked at the emergency center of the hospital before he rushed inside.

“I was called for the Shirogane. I’m family.” Shiro couldn’t be bothered with any preambles, not when his heart was pounding hard in his ear and all he wanted to hear was that it was all a mistake. He slapped his military ID on the counter before the nurse prompted him and waited for her to give him more information.

“A moment Sir.” The nurse told him as she went through her files. “Room 209, Sir. Will be on your left after you pass the entrance.”

Shiro’s throat was too constricted for him to be able to make a sound so he just nodded and rushed to the room. He hadn’t missed the nurse’s pained expression as she read the information. Nor had he missed the sadness in her eyes.  He walked on, doing his best not to negative even if everything in him screamed the contrary.

By the time he had reached the room, his heart felt like it was trying to beat itself out of his chest. The scene that welcomed him inside the room only made him feel worse. A child was lying in that bed and judging from the size, Shiro could tell it was his niece. Both her left arm and right leg were encased in casts and suspended slightly above her still form. The only sound in the room came from the patient monitor, its constant beeping the only reassurance Shiro had that she was still alive. As Shiro got closer, he noticed the bandages covering half her face and possibly some part of her torso too. Her usually beautiful blonde curls were still smeared in part with red and black, probably from the accident.

“Aimee...” He whispered her name brokenly. He reached out to touch her but at the last moment wouldn’t go through it. For some reasons, Shiro felt like the moment he touched her, his niece would disappear. He knew it was an irrational thought, but he couldn’t help it. Not when this had been the only room number he had gotten when there should have been four people. The message had been true and Aimee was lying here, hurt. Yet he wasn’t seeing or hearing about Ryou, Allura or Vito.

_God please no. Let them be okay. Please._

Shiro blinked back the tears that threatened to fall as he unconsciously let the prayer out. He had never been a believer of any kind but in that moment, when it felt like everything was falling apart around him, he couldn’t help it. He would believe in anything if it meant his family was safe. Hell he would give anything for all of this to be a bad dream he would wake up from soon.

“Mr. Shirogane? I’m Doctor Suzanne Carlyle.”

Finally. Shiro took a deep breath and turned to meet the doctor behind him. He didn’t miss the way her eyes widened in surprise when she saw his face. He was used to this reaction from people discovering that he and Ryou were identical twins. They had been so often mistaken for one another while they grew up that Shiro had decided to dye his fringe white to help differentiate them in high school. His parents were chagrined but Ryou and Allura had thought it suit him well and came up with the nickname Shiro. Not that the dye had mattered in the long term. Losing his arm in the navy had made the differences between both brothers even more glaring.

Shiro held his right hand to the doctor silently and admired the way she quickly hid her reaction to his prosthetic arm behind a mas of professionalism as she shook it.

“Your niece is going to be fine. Besides her broken leg and arm, her other injuries are pretty minor and shouldn’t give any problem. Her fractures should also heal fast as they’re not so severe. She should be up and walking within 6 weeks.“

Aimee wasn’t in danger. Shiro took a shaky breath. She would be okay. Now all he needed was to hear the same thing about the rest of the family.

 “What about-” His voice felt too raw even to his own ears and Shiro cleared his throat. “What about Vittorio? Ryou and Allura?”

 “Her brother is in the intensive care unit. His injuries were much more severe and will require more time. We were able to repair the damage caused to his ribs but he has a major concussion, as well as a few deep injuries. He needs to be watched over for the next 48 hours, after which he should be safe. The parents however…”

She looked at him then and her expression told him everything Shiro needed to know. He stumbled backward and had to use the bed behind him as support. No.

Ryou and Allura couldn’t be dead. No. Yet the doctor’s continued, confirming what Shiro had already guessed but refused to believe.  

“Mr. and Mrs. Shirogane didn’t survive the accident. They took the brunt of the collision being at the front. Your brother was dead before the ambulance got there and his wife lost too much blood by the time she got here. Her injuries…”

Shiro’s mind drew a blank there, his entire body freezing from the ice like sensation in his body. Ryou and Allura were both gone. He had lost his brother and best friend. He had also lost his childhood friend and sister. But more than that, Aimee and Vito had just lost their parents, their support. They would have to grow up without really knowing them. Hell, they weren’t even aware of it yet.

Bile rose in his throat as the word echoed in his head. Shiro felt like he was going to throw up any moment, a feeling closer to panic threatening to take over.

The steady sound of the beeping monitor and a soft grunting noise brought him back. Shiro turned back to his niece and found that while she was still asleep, she was frowning and grunting. Shiro immediately went to take her hand, wondering if she was about to wake up. But the little girl kept sleeping, unaware of the world around her. She would probably wake up disoriented and then Shiro would have to tell her the horrible truth.  He made a sound that sounded more like a painful whimper than anything else.

It took him a moment to realize that the doctor had come close and was holding his shoulder in a sympathetic gesture. Only then did he realize that he had started crying.

“I’m sorry for your loss, Mr. Shirogane. If there’s anything we can do…”

“No.” His voice came out hoarse, cold. “Can I see my nephew? I just… I want to… I-”

 _I just want to see that he’s okay with my own eyes._ It was what Shiro meant to say but couldn’t get the words out.

“Of course. His room is on the 4th floor. I can take you there when you’re ready.”

Shiro nodded and wiped his tears. He bent down and dropped a soft kiss on his niece’s forehead before he followed the doctor out. They rode the elevator to the 4th floor in complete silence and Shiro was thankful that the doctor left him alone. Often times when facing this kind of situation, some people felt it helped to talk and show more sympathy.  Fortunately, Dr. Suzanne wasn’t one of those people and only focused on walking him to Vito’s room, something Shiro appreciated right that moment. He just wanted to be left alone, with his nephew and niece.   

Inside the room, they found 2 nurses checking on his vitals and IV. Shiro barely acknowledged them as he approached the bed. His nephew slept with a breathing mask on, his face almost completely hidden by the bandages covering his head. They had his head in some kind of plaster mold, as if to keep him from moving his head too much. His breathing sounded labored, almost as if he couldn’t get air in like normal. Despite the fact that they had gotten him a smaller bed due to his small size, the bed still made him seem even smaller than usual. Shiro’s eyes welled up with tears again.

“Is he going to be- Will he be okay?” He asked, wanting more than anything reassurance for the 18-month boy. He needed him to be okay. 

“There’s been no change for the worse so far. He’s stable. We had to restrict his movement because of the injury to his neck and head but nothing he can’t heal from in the long term. Like I said earlier, we’re keeping him under observation for 48 hours. If he keeps on like this, there should be nothing to worry about, Mr. Shirogane.”

Shiro had to bit his lip to stop himself from asking her not to call him Mr. Shirogane. It felt like a bitter reminder that his brother was dead and he was the only adult Shirogane left.

“Thank you. I would like to stay here with him for the next few days. I need to-” Again his voice failed him and Shiro had to blink away some more tears. Why was this happening?   

“Sure. I’ll let the staff know. You’ll be informed if anything changes with your niece’s condition.”

A few minutes later he was left alone in the room with his nephew and very soon one of the hospital staff brought in a chair and some covers before leaving. Shiro was left alone with his nephew and his thoughts.  

Ryou and Allura were gone.

In the silence of the room, the thought resonated deeply within Shiro. It felt like his body and mind were slowly digesting the loss then. He quickly sat in the chair as his legs gave out under him. The tears followed soon as his mind kept replaying their last phone call and supplied him with images of his brother’s family in their happy moments. Shiro couldn’t stop the sobbing when it started. He didn’t want any of this to be happening yet here he was, watching over his injured nephews while their parents’ bodies were probably lying at the hospital morgue currently. He might even have to go and identify them later for the official record.

“Why them? Why now?”

Even as he asked these questions, Shiro knew he would get no answer. There was no good reason for everything happening. Never was for anything. Questioning lead nowhere and the why didn’t matter, his commander would often tell his unit. The most important things were the ‘what to do’ and ‘how to do it efficiently’ after the fact. That’s how he had gotten through his years as a soldier.

What Shiro should be thinking about right then was what to do and how to do it, especially with his nephews. They were orphans, having no family on either side beside him. He needed to have a plan for whenever they woke up later.

Yeah Shiro should have been thinking about that yet it felt like the pain was too fresh for him to focus on anything else. He was hurting and not sure what to do. Sure he would do whatever it took later to make sure his nephews were taken care of and okay. But for now, he just wanted to grieve in silence.

 

  **15 months later**

 

“And we’re finally there!”

Matt almost sang out the announcement as he made a right turn off the busy main street. Shiro heard rustling behind him and smiled. Matt’s raised voice had woken the kids up.

Their impatience had increased ten folds after their plane landed in Houston. Shiro had expected them to be too tired after the 5 hour flight from Washington to Texas but no could do. The kids had both been hyper and the game of 100 questions started the moment Matt picked them up at the airport. Aimee kept trying to get as much info about their new house as she could while Vito wouldn’t stop asking if they were there yet every 5 minutes. The evening rush hour had them stuck in traffic for almost two hour and it didn’t take long for the kids to get bored and fall asleep.

Shiro turned back instinctively, waiting for them to see him. After the accident, Aimee and Vito had developed the habit of looking for him upon waking up, starting right after their stay at the hospital. The children psychologist had explained that it was a mechanism born out of the trauma of losing their parents while they were asleep. The fact that Shiro looked so much like their own father and was there for them everytime they closed or opened their eyes during their stay at the hospital when their parents were not, had prompted them to develop the habit of seeking him out. Subconsciously, the children use that as a form of reassurance that they still had family with them.  

Aimee saw him first and smiled while her brother reached out for him. Shiro extended his left arm to him until his nephew could grab onto it. 

“There she is!!” Matt said as he parked the car in front of the house.

“Wait, that’s the house?”

There was no hiding his shock when he finally faced the house and saw what it looked like in person. The two-story home stood sturdy and beautiful, with auburn and mahogany concrete tiles and its dark tiled roof. On the left side of the house was a nicely trimmed garden, with 3 medium sized trees planted at equal distance of each other. The large driveway and two-door garage stood on the right, the doors painted in a nice dark brown. From first to second floor, you could see over 5 windows looming on the street.

“Big right? Told you we would find you something great. ”

Shiro only nodded in answer. He had only seen pictures of the unfinished house, having no time to come down here and check it out in person. Matt had just told him to leave everything to he, Lucas and Pidge, and not worry one bit. They would take care of the rest.

The Holt siblings had jumped in to help the moment they had heard about his desire to move in a bigger house and a peaceful environment for the kids to grow in. Although they had left their parents’ house to live in his apartment, Shiro still felt that being there would always remind them of their parents and make their recovery after the traumatic incident slower. In addition, the apartment only had 2 bedroom and 1 bath, without much space for him, two kids and their belongings. After receiving the psychologist’ approval, Matt and Pidge had immediately started searching in their area, assuring Shiro they could find something great within his budget. It had also helped that Matt’s life partner, Lucas, worked as a real estate agent in the area and decided to pitch in.

Shiro had expected something nice but nothing like the house he was seeing now.

“Yep that’s Houston for you! They like them big and affordable down here.” Matt said as if reading Shiro’s mind.  “Let’s get you in. You’ve yet to see the inside plus, there’s another surprise waiting for you.”

“A dog?”

“We have a pool?”

The excited little voices behind them made both adults laugh. The children still had their priorities straight in terms of what they wanted inside. Shiro followed Matt out of the car and went to open the door for Aimee and Vito.   

“Is this our new house? Woah!”

“Daddy, out! I want ta see!”

“I’m getting my own room?”

“My room too!”

Shiro shook his head at their enthusiasm. He had hesitated for so long before finally starting the whole process of finding a house because he had feared it could disrupt them even more.  He hadn’t wanted to move the two of them away from the only place they had known and called home for a while. Surprisingly enough, neither of them had expressed a lot of grief about moving out of Shiro’s apartment. It only took them a few days before they were asking Shiro if they would get a pool or a pet with the house. Chalk it up to kids being kids.

“There we go!” Shiro said as he opened the door for Aimee to get out. “Now no running, young lady. Go to uncle Matt and wait for us okay?”

Aimee pouted cutely before she nodded. She walked fast until she reached Matt, probably her best effort to not run. Shiro watched her go with affectionately. At 8, there was no denying Aimee took a lot after Allura, both physically and psychologically. She was as energetic as her mom had been close to her age and her blue eyes always shone with the same energy and determination her mom had.

“Me! Me! Ame wait for me!”

At the impatient tone, Shiro got back inside the car and quickly released Vito from his seat before he took him in his arms. There was no way Shiro was letting the soon to be 3-years-old  walk when the little bundle of energy would make sure to run off the moment his feet touched the ground. Better wait until they got inside.

Shiro noticed that Matt and Aimee were already inside the house by the time he had locked the doors. He moved up the pathway leading to the entrance, listening to Vito’s babbling in his hear. 

“Daddy, it’s big! I want a dog! And my room too!” Shiro kept smiling, knowing the little tyke was only repeating his sister’s words, as per usual.

“Yes it is. I thought you liked sleeping with me and Ame?”

“I do, I do!” Vito answered, his dark locks moving around as he nodded vehemently. “I like sleeping with Daddy. Ame too! But my roo- Ah, daddy, look! Look! Pretty!!”

Shiro stopped at the way his nephew gripped his shoulder while he pointed toward something behind them. Turning around, he almost snorted when he finally saw the reason for his nephew’s sudden change of focus. Of course it had to be a dog. A really big one at that, right there, across the street. Shiro wasn’t sure what breed it was, but the dog was large and tall.

Its black fur was thick and slightly longer than the average dog fur Shiro could remember seeing here and there. It also glistened with the last rays of the sunset hitting it. From where he stood, Shiro could see some white under the dog from its belly up to the underside of its head. A few brown spots colored its eyes, the side of its mouth and its legs. The dog’s owner was behind it, seemingly dragged forward by the dog itself instead of it being the contrary. The animal kept moving ahead left and right, leaving the man scrambling behind in a vain attempt to control the dog with its leash. He could hear the man swear despite the distance and almost laughed out loud at the scowl the man made when the dog pulled again and his tied hair came undone.

“Pretty!” Vito chose that moment to call out for the dog and the owner turned his head in their direction. It was then that Shiro actually notice that the other guy had a mullet, completed with the long side bangs. He tried to suppress his chortle with his left hand as the man’s dark gaze met his pointedly but must have not done a good job because the man squinted at him, his expression turning really annoyed. Shiro hid his aborted laughter behind a cough immediately. The man kept watching him with the same thunderous expression, without even blinking.  Shiro waved in his direction, thinking about how it would best to not have enemies already on his first day. Unfortunately, the other man royally ignored him, dismissing him even after rolling his eyes. He just glanced at Vito, whose attention was solely on the dog and then walked away, his dog still taking the lead.

How very charming. Shiro shrugged and turned around.

“Noo! Pretty don’t go! Daddy, I want ta see pretty!”

“Of course buddy! Let’s go check the house and your room first okay? I’m sure the nice man isn’t far so you can see pretty later.” At his words, his nephew scrunched up face cleared immediately.

“Really? I get my room too?”

“Yep! And if we go see the house now, I’ll even tell the nice man that you want to play with his dog. ”

Vito gave him a blinding smile and nodded happily, a slight flush appearing on his caramel skin.

Shiro snorted under his breath as they entered the house. Asking the nice man huh.

After that first meeting, he was fairly certain that the guy had taken offense to him laughing and wouldn't want anything to do with them. Hell, he wouldn’t even return Shiro’s greeting and hadn't looked like he even wanted to. Moreover, Shiro didn't even know where the other man lived. He couldn't very well sit outside in the early evening and wait for the guy to come by with his dog. That sounded kind of weird, even to himself.

His mind suddenly flashed back to the picture of the mullet guy in his red jogging shorts and black shirt as his dog dragged him away and he chuckled to himself again.

“Why you laughing, Daddy? I want ta laugh too.”

“It’s nothing Vito. Daddy was just thinking about something funny.”

Possibly one of their future neighbors. Shiro promised himself that he would apologize to the other man if he ever saw him. He really shouldn’t have laughed at the other man.

This was a new start for him and the kids, something to help the three of them move on and meet new people. It was better to start on a positive note, with more welcoming vibes around them. He would try to make amends with the stranger the next time. And well, he had to find a way to honor his promise to Vito or else the little tyke would hound him about it.

Welcome to Texas, indeed.


	2. Lost and found

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was long coming and I apologize for taking this long to update. Life got in the way in the weirdest way. This chapter will have a map of the residential area they all Keith and Shiro live in, so you can have and on how far their houses are from each other. And hopefully it helps you follow better some part of this chapter.

Keith wiped the sweat off his face and closed the garage door behind him. His burning skin immediately welcomed the cooler air inside the enclosed place and Keith felt grateful once more for the fact that the fire door between garage and house allowed the AC to seep through.  It wasn’t enough to erase the suffocating feeling he still had from working under the sun but it was still something. The damn heat outside was killing already and it wasn’t even 11 am. Fucking city of Houston.

He stored his mower at its usual place and got rid of his gardening attire, in a hurry to get inside the house. He sighed in relief once he opened the fire door and was hit by the AC, embracing the cold air around him. Keith went straight for the kitchen, skipping past the first living room, his office and the stairs without sparing a glance. He would usually check to see if the wild beast he called his dog wasn’t in playing in either places but his major focus was getting some cool water in his body in the next second.

Grabbing a glass from one of the many cupboards above him, he filled it at the fridge water dispenser and drank it quickly.  There was no way he was drinking anything but really cool water when he felt both hot and dehydrated. How long had he stayed out anyway? An hour and a half? Two? More? He was so thirsty he might as well have been out there mowing his lawn all day long. He poured himself another glass of water after finishing of the first one and another again before his eyes wandered to his backyard through one of the window facing him. At least, he had gotten rid of one hindrance for now.

He might have been unhappy about being outside when it was so hot but the end result was worth it.. The grass was nicely trimmed front and back and his entire property was now the picture perfect representation of ‘the nice house in a nice neighborhood’ thing, the Pinehurst Neighborhood Association had going around the community. Now, Sherry Colt and the rest of the nosy people that made their little elite association would leave him alone. No more visits or ‘mow your lawn or we’re informing the city officials’ notices pasted on his door.

Coming home from his last job the week before to find the many multicolored sticky notes pasted on his front door had not been fun in anyway. Nor had the incessant bell ringing announcing he had visitors. Fortunately it was all over now and he would be left alone while they found someone else to go bother. Maybe the new family that moved in the street two houses over.

Even as he thought that, Keith snorted. As if. Mrs. Colt would never show her fangs this early. The older woman would have the PNA play nice and go welcome the new family with cookies, pies and what not. They would praise the neighborhood, how great and lovely the community and residents were and how well located it was. It always started like that before the gossiping and the sticky notes came. Keith hoped the other man would be wise enough not to fall for their nice neighbors act. Then again why would he care? He could still remember that the man had been laughing at his expenses the first time he saw him, without them properly meeting. Yeah, not his problem at all.

He had other problems that needed solving to think  about other people future encounter with the PNA. One of his major issues being his next book or starting it.  

His deadline was approaching fast and Keith still had no idea where to take his plot next. Mostly, he was at a loss when it came to his main character life in general after the whole breaking up and transferring to another city in the last book. Jeffrey Answers was coming out of a 5 year relationship with his partner on the job, a bad breakup that had resulted in moving 2000 miles away from his old police department. It was all supposed to be a new start for Jeff, his old life with Zack mostly gone. Yet Keith was stuck, unable to come up with anything that would help Jeff start anew.

He sighed as he remembered his editor’s warning him about tailoring his protagonist personal life around his own and the risks if things didn’t go the way Keith wanted had planned. He had been a real idiot for dismissing Coran’s advices when the older man had been generally right about almost everything. Like how he had known Keith’s first book would be a hit series or how he had felt that Timothy wasn’t the right partner for Keith after meeting him in person. Coran had tried to make Keith understand that making Jeff and Zack love life mirror his and Timothy wasn’t a good idea. Of course Keith wouldn’t listen, thinking he had found the right guy for him. And of course, Coran had been right about Tim.

Now his inspiration seemed to be gone or at least hidden under his resentment. Thinking about anything Jeff related reminded him Zack which in turn always took him right back to the bitterness he still held toward his failed relationship with Tim. 

_Way to go Mister I know what I’m doing._

Keith groaned at himself. Here he was again, dwelling into the past. People broke up all the time and it had been a year since his relationship with Tim ended. The other pilot was probably settled somewhere with his new partner, enjoying his life while he kept grudged.

“Fucking get over it, moron.” Enough was enough. He had promised his readers and editor that he would deliver the last book in his _Home series_ before the end of the year. It was well past the time for him to find a new direction and get back on track.

 Keith resolutely told himself that he _would_ make good on his promise by all means, starting now. He ignored the little mocking voice that reminded him that he had already tried to pep talk like this and failed. First, a shower was in order. Then he would see to it that Max had enough food and water for a few hours and finally he would use the rest of the afternoon to work on his novel again. Nothing would distract him from focusing on Jeff this time.

He cleaned his glass and put it back before he went upstairs to take a shower. By the time he was back downstairs, Keith was feeling much better and ready for some serious brainstorming. Time to tackle the real hard work and focus on writing Jeff the happy ever after he deserved. Dozens of ideas were running through his mind that he needed to write down and sort through so he didn’t lose them. Beforehand though, the dog room.

Keith was turning the knob on that door when he heard the dog bark coming from outside. Max. He would recognize the deep bark anywhere, even when it was muffled. How was she outside though? She had disappeared while he took care of his backyard and Keith had assumed the dog had gone back inside, to her room. He opened the door to make sure his ear wasn’t deceiving him only to find the room empty. If she was still out of the house, then it could only mean that she had taken advantage of his inattention to go sniff around on her own.

“Shit, shit and shit.” Keith grunted, annoyed. This was just what he needed right now. Was it too much to hope that no one had seen her wandering around without him? He would rather not have to deal with the association again when he had just gotten rid of them, particularly Mrs. Colt. The old woman would give him the talk of his life about how much of an irresponsible dog owner he was then threaten him of reporting him to the animal police or some other animal agency. Really not what he need.  

Following the sound of another bark led him to the back. The transparent sliding doors allowed him to see her running from left and right, from one side of the fence to the other. It strangely reminded him of her excitement when they were playing catch. As he got much closer, his ears caught something that sounded like a child voice and Keith hurried to the door, praying that it was hearing thing. Except the scene that greeted him after he opened the door all but confirmed that his hearing worked perfectly well.

Max had been playing catch, just like he thought. Probably with the small child she was currently busy licking as the child lied in the grass under her, giggling loud under her show of affection.  

“Pretty, stop. It ticklish.”

Tickles, Keith couldn’t help but correct in his mind as he stood there shocked. How had he missed all that noise and where had the kid come from?

“What the hell?”

At the sound of his voice, both dog and child turned toward him and Keith had to stop himself from swearing out loud when he saw the kid’s darker complexion and bright blue eyes. It was the child from last week end, but without his rude father this time. What was he doing in his house? How had he even gotten there? Did it have anything to do with Max disappearing? This spelled trouble already and Keith swore this time.

 Fucking great.

 

*********

Where had Vito disappeared to?

As much as Shiro was trying to tell himself to calm down and not panic, he couldn’t stop the fear coursing through him. His military training was the only reason thing that had kept him focused enough that he could come up with a plan to have them all look for Vito in an effective manner. Pidge had taken Ame with her to drive around the left side of the street the house was one. Lucas and Matt had taken the crossing street in front of their house and he was currently running the opposite way to Pidge, preferring to be on foot so he could check his surroundings more thoroughly and come back to the house if he needed to.

Shiro had no idea when and how the toddler had slipped out but fact was that Vito was gone. The one thing that kept going through his mind as he made a right on the adjacent street, beyond finding his nephew, was that this was all his fault.

Pidge, Matt and Lucas had come over to help them finish unpacking over the week-end, as they had agreed days before. The moving company had finally brought in the rest of their belongings and everything else Shiro had ordered for the new house had also been delivered. There was a lot of stuff to unpack and even more to assemble. Everyone had been busy working, even Vito who tried to help despite being too small to lift the majority of the boxes surrounding them. He had tried though, smiling proudly whenever he got a compliment from either of the grown-ups but had gotten tired real fast., Shiro had sent him out to play ball at the back of the house until lunch, knowing the pool fence was locked. He had been so sure they would find him back when they caught a break from working. But Ame had come to him a little after 11am, mentioning that she couldn’t find her brother. And Shiro had realized how wrong he had been.

“Vito! Vito! If you hear me come out buddy!” His booming voice came back to him, echoing in the quiet of the street. There weren’t a lot of cars around, maybe because people had gone away for the week ends. But Shiro couldn’t afford to care about whether or not he was bothering his neighbors. He had to find his little boy.

“Vito!” Shiro yelled again, his heart racing as he scanned the street left and right in hopes that his nephew would come out. There were so many turns and streets. He could be anywhere. “Vito please answer!!”

Why would Vito leave the house like that without telling them? The little boy was very active for his age, had always been. But even then, he did like to have either his sister or uncle with him when he was out. It didn’t make sense. What if something had happened? What if someone had taken him?

His heart constricted painfully in his chest. With Ryou and Allura gone, he had become Ame and Vito’s legal parent now. Watching over them and making sure they were safe and attended to was his responsibility as their new guardian. Yet here he was, not even two weeks into their new city and already he had been negligent enough that his nephew had disappeared without him noticing.

“Vito!” He couldn’t afford the negative thoughts now. He had to think positive. He would find his little boy and make sure this never happened again.

He would call visit each house in the neighborhood, call the police, the mayor, the governor.  Everyone. He would do whatever it took to get Vito back.

 

 

*********

 

What was he doing?

“Ah! Cold.”

“Sorry.” Keith mixed some hot water to the cool water running in the sink until the temperature was good enough for him. Not too warm but not cool either. Dipping the small towel in his hand under the running faucet, he squeezed out the excess of water before he pressed it gently all around the toddler’s face again. “Is this better?”

“Hm,hm!” The child closed his eyes and let the adult clean him up, his little feet dangling off the edge of the surface he sat on. A little too trusting for Keith’s peace of mind but then again it was better than having him make a fuss and scream bloody murder. Getting arrested on attempt of kidnapping and preying on a toddler was certainly not in his plans.

If the traces of grass, dirt and dried saliva on him were anything to go by, the child had been out there, playing with Max for a little while. The microwave clock read 12:30. An hour or more give or take. The blue short and white shirt were each closer in shade to brown by now but there was nothing else Keith could do short of actually washing the clothes. Keith worked diligently, cleaning the boy as much as he possibly could despite the logical part of his brain screaming at him for his stupid decisions.

Why had he taken the kid inside his house?

The first thing he should have done was get the kid back to his dad. He knew where the child and had briefly met him with his dad already. There was no pondering how to get him back to his family so Keith should have taken him straight back from where he came from. For all he knew, his family might have been desperately looking for him right that moment. Yet instead of doing what logic and self-preservation would dictate, Keith had brought the kid inside his house,  set him on the kitchen counter next to the sink and berated him for getting dirty and playing out there under the sun. As if he was the child’s parent.

“There, all done. You’re clean now. Or at least as clean as you can be without a shower.” Keith put the towel away, satisfied with his work. The boy opened back clear blue eyes and blinked twice at him before he smiled.

“Thank you!”

“You’re welcome. Now let’s get you out of here be-”

“I’m thistee. Can I have a glass of water, please?”

Keith pursed his lips to stop himself from smiling at the way the boy pronounced the words before he nodded. Giving him water wouldn’t kill him. There was no way he was allergic to water, right? No one could die from drinking water. Keith put the kid down and went to get him a bottle in the pantry. He could hear him follow behind, with Max in tow. His dog had been quiet and watched him clean the toddler attentively, almost like she was trying to make sure that Keith wasn’t doing anything to harm him. Like things weren’t weird enough.

“There you go.” Keith opened the bottle of fresh water and handed it to him. The kid thanked him again before he drank slowly. Keith watched him while he waited for him to be done.

The kid had taken a lot after his dad. Same slightly slanted eyes, strong jaw, nose, and forehead. Even the smiles were kind of similar or at least they did look similar from what Keith could remember of the dad last time. Not that he had paid him all that much attention anyway. What Keith could remember clearly though was that the father was part Asian and it was clear the kid had inherited of those same genes. But his caramel skin tone was also a clear give away that his mother was either mixed too or of African ancestry. It made for an interesting mixed heritage.    

“Can I give my water to pretty too?” The boy’s question shook him out of his thoughts and Keith saw that he was looking at Max as he talked, one hand moving to touch her fur again. Keith smiled a little at the boy’s name for Max.

“It’s not pretty. Her name’s Max. Max black. And she’s got her own water in her room.”

The boy turned excited eyes toward him.

“Her room? I have my room too. Just like Max! I like Max!” The boy went to hug the dog and Keith quickly grabbed the open bottle before it got dropped and put it on kitchen island. The less incidents, the better.

“Max is pretty.” The boy said happily, giggling again as the dog licked him.       

“Yeah, she is.” Keith watched them for a little bit before he reminded himself that he didn’t have time to play house with the kid. He needed to get him back to his dad.

“Now, err… What’s your name again?”

“Vito!” The boy answered enthusiastically as he turned bright blue eyes on Keith.

“Okay Vito. My name’s Keith. I -”

“Kee.” The boy repeated with the same enthusiasm while Keith blinked at him, unsure how he felt about the way boy pronounced his name.

“Hmm, Keith. K – ee – th.” Keith repeated this time, trying to pronounce so the boy could get it right.

“Kayyyy-fuuuu?” Vito repeated, frowning as he tried to say it the way Keith had.

Keith was about to correct him again but decided it really didn’t matter. The boy had difficulties saying his name, no big deal. He was still a baby after all and he didn’t look older than 4. Well not so much a baby as he was a toddler. One who really needed to go back to his family in the next minutes before Keith got into troubles.

“It’s fine. Kee is fine.” Keith lowered himself so he was eye level with him. “Now do you know where your dad is? I need to get you home.”

“Daddy? Home… ” The child looked surprised for a moment, eyes growing before they suddenly filled with tears. “Daddy! Ame!”

When the crying started, Keith swore under his breath. Stupid decision. It seemed mentioning his dad had somehow reminded the child that he wasn’t home. Keith would have hit his head if he wasn’t certain it would scare the child into crying even harder. This was exactly the reason why he preferred not to deal with kids. He wasn’t sure how to handle them most of the time.

Max let out a soft whimper as she licked away at Vito’s tears, probably trying to comfort him in her way. Her eyes went to her master and if there ever was a ‘do something!’ dog expression, Keith swore it was the one she had right then.

“I want my Daddy!” The boy cried harder, burying his teary face in the dog fur.

“Hey, hey, hey. Shhh…” Keith tried to keep his voice as soothing as possible as he touched the boy’s head. “You’ll see your dad, okay? I’m going to take you back home, so don’t cry. I’m sure your dad is waiting for you.”

Hopefully not with the police.

Sniffling, the toddler turned back to look at him cautiously. Tears still run down his face but his crying had gone quieter. Keith gave him an encouraging smile and ruffled his dark hair.

“ Pro- promise?”

“I promise.” He wiped the tears off Vito’s face before he offered him a hand. “What you say we get going now, huh? We can even take Max with us so she helps us get you back home safe.”

“Pretty will come too?” He asked, a little bit of his earlier excitement coming back.

“Of course. Max wouldn’t want you to be away from your dad. You’re her new favorite person now.” And Keith didn’t think he was lying there in the least. Max seemed so attentive to the boy, one would have thought she had known him for a long time.  Vito, Keith reminded himself.

“Really? I like Max pretty too.” The child gave him a wide smile and finally took his hand. Keith laughed at the amalgam of name while Max barked at them, her tail wagging around excitedly. Yeah she liked Vito alright

“It’s true, she likes you very much. Now let’s go find your daddy and hmm…”

“Ame!” He repeated helpfully. Maybe Ame was the mom, although Keith wondered why he would call her only by name when he called his other parent dad. Why was he caring about this again anyway?  

“Right. Time to get you back home to your daddy and Ame, little Vito.”

“Okay!” The boy nodded in agreement and allowed Keith to pick him up, immediately holding onto his neck. 

“Well you’re heavier than you look. How old are you?”

“Free.” The toddler held 4 fingers up proudly and Keith chuckled. The kid was cute he had to admit, bad pronunciation and all.  

“Well you’re a big boy now, aren’t you?”

“Yes! Daddy said I can have my room and a dog now.”

“Wow! That’s great! ” The child nodded with all the energy he could muster.

“Hm,hm! My room is biiiiig like this. But the pool is more bigger.” Keith laughed when the kid spread his arms wide to show exactly how big everything was and acted surprised at the pool mention. Little Vito took that as his cue to describe everything else and make Keith even more amazed, distracted enough not to notice they were on their way out.  

He listened to the toddler babbling and grabbed Max’s leash, his keys and one of his hat as he went to the front door. Max followed them quietly and stood still while Keith put the leash on her collar, once they were outside. Keith knew she was excited about going out again when she yapped happily and licked his hand.  She barked again when Vito laughed at Keith putting the hat on his head. Although the house wasn’t far from his, not even 10 minute worth of walking, it was still hot outside and the sun was rather high in the sky. Keith had decided it was better to be safe by keeping the kids head protected from the sun rays than having anything happen to him.

“Now let’s go on our adventure!” He said, making car noises which seemed to amuse the toddler to no end and resulted in him letting out delighted squeals. Max was walking at his pace, content to stay at his side without giving him much trouble. Her attention went from the street they were on to Vito and Keith was once again surprised at how much she seemed to care about the toddler. Keith wouldn’t complain though. Max being docile meant less struggling for him in between handling her and the rather active toddler in his arms.

It didn’t take them long to reach the house and Keith noticed the SUV parked in the driveway. After the asking the child and confirming that yes, it was his dad’s car and it was new and big Keith went to ring the bell. No answer. He rang the bell a few more times, knocking in between pushing the bell button. Still no answers. There seemed to be nobody inside, despite the car in the driveway.

Keith took a few steps back, trying to see if anyone was around through movement at the windows but saw nothing. Then again the house windows around here tended to be tainted so people couldn’t see inside the house from outside. Had they gone out? He really hadn’t counted on the parents not being home.

“Daddy!! Ame! Open the door, am back!” Vito yelled in his arms, almost startling Keith from his thoughts. At least the kid was still enthusiastic about all of it.

“Seems like no one’s home.”

“But uncoe Matt and auntie Pee are with Daddy! Uncoe Matt! Auntie Pee! Daddy!”

Keith couldn’t stop his chuckles this time. The toddler really had a way to butcher people’s name. Looking back to the house, he thought more about what the kid had just said. If there was this many people inside the house, at least four without counting the toddler, then maybe they had all gone out to look for him. It would explain why nobody was answering the door. Although Keith wondered why they hadn’t left someone behind, just in case. That’s what he would have done at least. Then again, his 3-yr-old wasn’t gone with him having no clue on his whereabouts so what did he know. 

Did he wait here for someone to come or go back to his house and come back later? Somehow, the moment the latter option came to his mind he realized it would only make things worse. It could be hours before anyone came back and he would have no idea when to come and check if he went back. Yeah it would be better to stay. The entrance was shaded enough that you could feel the sun sitting on the stairs there. He would wait there. Hopefully, someone would come back soon and he could be back to his own house in no time.

 

 

*********

 

Vito wasn’t anywhere around this part of the neighborhood. He had checked, knocked on doors and the few people who had answered had not seen his little boy. Some did take his contact and promise to let him know if they saw anything. Three residents were even nice enough to propose to join him in the search. But in the end, Shiro still had no clues about his nephew’s whereabouts. Matt and Pidge still hadn’t contacted him either. To say that Shiro’s worry was increasing would be an understatement.

At present, Shiro was running back from where he came from, retracing his steps while his eyes surveyed his surroundings still.

“Vito!” He had been yelling the boy name for a long time now and kept yelling in hopes of receiving an answer. Vito had to be somewhere around. He just had to.

He noticed he was back at the crossing again, not far from the house.

“Vito” He glanced in at the house and saw that neither Pidge nor Matt’s cars were back. “Please talk to Daddy! Vito!”

“…re! Here!!” Shiro was almost past the intersection when he heard the loud call.

He turned back in the direction the voice came from and he saw the large dog on his property. He was about to scream in frustration when his eyes caught sight of the man coming from the driveway with a little kid in his arms wearing a large straw hat.

“Over here!” The man said again, moving in his direction after he saw him. Shiro only caught a glimpse of the child blue shorts but it was enough for him to start running. His heart beat madly in his chest as he reached the stranger, tears of relief threatening to fall when the child screamed excitedly.  

“It’s Daddy!”

Vito. He had found his boy.

The moment he was close enough, Shiro was catching his nephew’s outstretched arm and hugging him.

“Daddy!” Vito immediately snuggled up to him, with his arms around his neck.

 “Thank God! Thank God! I thought I had lost you buddy.” Shiro pushed the hat off his head and took a look at the familiar features before he was hugging him again. Vito was safe and sound, finally back home. Shiro kissed the top of his head and laughed when he got two kisses in return. He had found him, his baby boy was safe. He couldn’t stop thinking about the same thing over and over. He forgot all about the man and the dog standing next to them until he heard another bark and raised his head.  

“Stay put Max. That’s Vito’s dad.” Shiro suddenly remembered that he had to thank the stranger too and held his hand out.

 “God, I’m so sorry! I’m so glad to see him. We were worried sick about him. Thank you for bringing him back.”

“You’re welcome.” The man shook his hand with a smile.

Shiro smiled back and focused more on the man in front of him and was suddenly reminded of something. He knew the guy. Actually he knew both him and his dog or at least had seen them the day he had moved in.

“Mullet guy.” It took him a few seconds to realize he had said it out loud. “God I’m so- ”

 “Riiiight.” The man took his hand back, his open smile growing strained in seconds. “Nice to have met ya but I got go. Come on, Max.” He walked right past Shiro, ignoring his attempt to call him back.

“Wait, I’m s-”

“Bye Kee! Bye Max Pretty! I’ll come again and we can play!” Vito said loudly next to him as he waved them goodbye.

“Wait, please. I didn’t-” 

“Ask your Dad first, buddy. I’ll see you around, little Vito.” The other man held the hand not holding the leash up in goodbye and moved away without ever turning back in their direction. He had only acknowledged Vito. Shiro tried to stop him again, unsure of what to call him but his nephew didn’t give him time.

“Daddy, can I go to Kee next time and play with Max pretty? Please?” The excited face looking up at him was hopeful, waiting for his answer impatiently.

“We’ll talk about it later Vito . Let Daddy apo… ”

His phone rang right then, startling him in it intensity before he reminded himself that he had increased the ringtone earlier. He tried to get it out of his pocket to check the caller ID but lost his grip on it. By the time he had picked it up and was answering, the other man was gone. Shiro sighed heavily, congratulating himself again on his lacking social skills. He had managed to antagonize the man even more after last week and this time, right after the guy had brought back his little boy. Just great.

Picking up the phone, he told Pidge the good news, catching her relieved sigh and Ame's joyful 'Vittorio!' in the background.  Pidge quickly promised to call her brother and Lucas to inform them while he did the same for the other residents who had willingly decided to help him search. As he hanged up the phone, his eyes shifted back to the intersection the stranger had disappeared from and he sighed again. Was it going to be the left or the right? 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next chapter should get things moving on more swiftly and get more characters introduced. I hope you guys enjoyed the chapter.


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